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Mersereau Ring
The Mersereau Ring, operating throughout the New Brunswick and New York regions during the American Revolution, began gathering intelligence on British military activity for George Washington as early as December 1776.[1] While retreating through New Brunswick, George Washington set up the Mersereau Ring through businessman and patriot Joshua Mersereau.[1] At the time, Joshua was serving in the Revolutionary war as a commissary of prisoners for Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and Rhode Island under Elias Boudinot.[2] The Mersereau family, owning a tavern on Staten Island and a stagecoach line between New York and Philadelphia, was familiar with the roads and greater New York area and had a covert means for transporting intelligence reports through their legitimate businesses.[3] According to their arrangements, Joshua's eldest son John LaGrange Mersereau remained in New Brunswick after American forces retreated.[1] Due to weakness in his right arm, John LaGrange was unable to carry a musket and serve with the army so he assumed this intelligence role to aid the American forces.[4] In 1777, the Mersereau Ring joined the greater Dayton-Mersereau-Hendricks intelligence network operating under Colonel Elias Dayton of the 1st New Jersey Militia.[1]
Notable Accomplishments
The earliest intelligence success for the Mersereau Ring occurred in December of 1776 when Joshua and John LaGrange discovered evidence that the British planned to pursue the retreating Continental Army across the Delaware River.[3] The British intentionally sunk boats with the purpose of floating them for transporting troops across the Delaware; however, the Mersereaus discovered the boats and removed them, allowing the Continental Army to escape without pursuit.[3]
The Mersereau Ring played a role in the capture of British Major John Andre, ultimately exposing the betrayal of American General Benedict Arnold, in September of 1779. An agent from the Mersereau Ring warned Major Benjamin Tallmadge about alleged plans for Major John Andre, under a false name, to meet in person with General Arnold as the two plotted the surrender of West Point to the British.[3] Major Tallmadge, as intelligence chief for George Washington, had unknowingly granted a safe conduct pass for a "John Anderson", Major Andre's alias, at the request of General Arnold.[5] However, when Major Tallmadge was informed that an American outpost under Lieutenant John Jameson had arrested a British officer with documents discussing the surrender of West Point, he realized Major John Andre's true identity and arrested him.[5]
John LaGrange Mersereau
Once American forces retreated across the Delaware River, John LaGrange moved from New Brunswick to Staten Island and later Manhattan where he gathered intelligence from behind British lines.[1] Joshua's apprentice in shipbuilding, John Parker, served as a courier between John LaGrange and the American forces, completing at least three trips across battle lines.[1] John Parker was eventually caught by the British at Amboy and died in prison, prompting John LaGrange to assume responsibilities as both agent and courier.[1] When serving as courier himself, John LaGrange used a large stone at Shooter's Island as a dead drop between New Jersey and Staten Island to pick up instructions and deposit intelligence reports.[1] John LaGrange would cross the river in a raft with his messages safely kept in a bottle towed behind him, allowing him to dispose of the incriminating evidence if he was intercepted by British forces.[1] Light signals along the river served as indicators between John LaGrange and American forces for when instructions or reports were dropped on Shooter's Island.[1]
After 18 months of espionage behind British lines, the British began to suspect John LaGrange, prompting the agent to rejoin American forces in Rutland, MA.[6] Once back with American forces, John LaGrange served as a deputy commissary of imprisoned British troops for the remainder of the conflict, caring for troops from General John Burgoyne's army.[1] In order to maintain the flow of information coming from this network after John LaGrange's role was compromised, the Mersereau Ring received assistance from additional Mersereau family members. John LaGrange's younger brother Joshua used a skiff to go to Staten Island where he would pick up copies of the Register that Paul Mersereau would leave in the cellar of his house.[1]
John Mersereau
The elder John Mersereau, brother of Joshua and uncle of John LaGrange, oversaw a smaller network within the ring with at least six intelligence agents.[1] These agents typically identified themselves in reports by their initials and consequently most of their identities are unknown, yet some are suspected. The only known agent from this network is Paul Latourette while the identities of "Amicus Reipublicae" and "A Stranger" remain unknown. The suspected identities of the other agents include John Cork under the alias "J.C.", John Meeker or one of the Mersereaus under the alias "J.M.", and Asher Fitz Randolph under the alias "A.R."[1]
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n Bakeless, John (1959). Turncoats, Traitors, and Heroes. Philadelphia & New York: Lippincott. p. 179. ISBN 31211011871742.
{{cite book}}: Check|isbn=value: length (help) - ^ "Founders Online: To George Washington from Joshua Mersereau, 10 June 1789". Retrieved 2018-03-21.
- ^ a b c d Harty, Jared (2012). [www.dtic.mil/get-tr-doc/pdf?AD=ADA566174 "George Washington: Spymaster and General Who Saved the American Revolution"]. Defense Technical Information Center. Retrieved March 21, 2018.
{{cite web}}: Check|url=value (help); Cite has empty unknown parameter:|dead-url=(help) - ^ "John LaGrange Mersereau (1760-1841) - Find A..." www.findagrave.com. Retrieved 2018-03-21.
- ^ a b Sulick, Michael (2012). Spying in America. Washington, D.C.: Georgetown University Press. p. 54. ISBN 978-1-58901-926-3.
- ^ "John LaGrange Mersereau (1760-1841) - Find A..." www.findagrave.com. Retrieved 2018-03-21.